Hans-Joachim Hermann was born on August 1st 1913 in Kiel, Germany. Hans-Joachim Hermann began his military career as an infantry officer, but after his introduction to gliding – and an invitation from Herman Göring, he transferred to the newly-created Luftwaffe and was commissioned in 1935. In August 1936, Herrmann was in the first group of Germans to arrive in Spain to support General Franco's Nationalist forces. Initially Hans-Joachim Hermann flew bombing operations in the Junkers 52 before becoming a founder member of the Condor Legion, whosemain mission was to attack airfields and defensive positions near Madrid. Many more bombing operations followed, and in April 1937 he returned to Germany. When Germany invading Poland Hermann took off in his Heinkel He111 to bomb railway lines in Poland on the first day. This was the first of 18 targets that Hermann attacked before his unit moved to support the German invasion of Norway. His unit was deployed to bomb targets near Oslo and Stavanger and after the fall of Norway, Hermann's unit was re-equipped with the Junkers 88 and moved to support the German army during the blitzkrieg across the Low Countries and France. During the battle of Britain Hermann was the commander of the 7th Staffel of KG-4, and he led many bombing attacks on England. His first target was oil refineries at Thames Haven and on the night of the 7th / 8th of September 1940 he attacked London. This was his 69th operation against England, when he bombed the India Dock. By the end of the Battle of Britian Hajo Hermann had flown 21 missions over London. A formidable figure in the Luftwaffe, Hajo Hermann was originally awarded the Knight's Cross in 1940 as a bomber pilot. In February 1941 while based in Sicily, Hermann led dive-bombing attacks against airfields on Malta. He was also ordered to hold the British Fleet in check. Attacks against the Royal Navy's heaviest ships followed. On April 7th 1941 following the German advance into Greece, Hermann's unit started mining and bombing operations in the eastern Mediterranean. On one attack, against shipping in Piraeus harbour, Hermann's bomb hit Clan Fraser, which was carrying 350 tons of high explosive. The resulting explosion sank 10 other ships and closed the port for many months. Hermann flew over 320 operations with KG4. In July 1941 Hermann was appointed commander of a bomber group, initially based in France to attack targets in England, before moving to a new base in the far north of Norway. His unit attacked Allied convoys heading for Murmansk with supplies for the Russians - these artic convoys included PQ-17, which was continously attacked. PQ -17 would lose a total of 24 merchantmen and only 11 ships made it through. With II./JG30, Hermann sank a total of 12 ships and in 1942 Hermann was assigned to the general staff in Germany, where he became a close confidant of Göring. In July 1942 he was appointed to the Luftwaffe operational staff. During the summer of 1943 as the Royal Air Force carried out night bombing raids, Hermann devised the tactic of using day fighters to hunt alone rather than in packs. As a bomber man himself, his ideas initially gained little support from the Luftwaffe's night fighter staff, but Göring supported the idea. Flown by experienced night fighter pilots and ex-instructors, the fighters waited in the darkness above their Allied targets, using the light of fires below to illuminate the bombers before attacking. He was responsible for the formation of JG300 and founded the highly successful Wilde Sau (Wild Boar) tactics of free roaming Fw190 night fighters. Hermann himself flew more than 50 wild boar missions and was twice forced to bail out of his stricken fighter. In December 1943 he was appointed Luftwaffe Inspector of Aerial Defence. At the end of 1944 he led the 9th Flieger division and created the famous Rammkommando. Hermann was credited with shooting down nine RAF bombers. After being Inspector General of night fighters, Hermann was appointed to command the First Fighter Division, when he continued to fly on operations. At the end of the war he was captured by the Russians. He spent 10 years in Soviet camps and was one of the last to be released, returning to Germany on October 12th 1955. Hajo Hermann awarded the Knight's Cross, Oak Leaves and Swords. Sadly, we have learned that Hajo Hermann passed away on 5th November 2010.

Focke-Wulf FW.190A-5/U8 of 1 Gruppe, Schnellkampfgeschwader 10 in 1943. All national markings were painted out, except for the call sign C on the fuselage and repeated, crudely sprayed, on the engine cowling. ......

On the night of 7th-8th June 1944, a Lancaster of No.207 Sqn piloted by Wing Commander John Grey was part of a force of 112 bombers and 10 Mosquitoes sent to attack a tank storage park near Cerisy-la-Foret. With the D-Day landings just 48 hours old,......

One of the most widely used aircraft of the Luftwaffe, the Ju88 was employed in a variety of roles, including night-fighter, bomber, dive-bomber and reconnaissance. The aircraft fought in numerous theatres, including the Battle of France, Battle o......

On the 12th May 1944, Col. Hubert Zemke tried his new fan tactic, designed to engage Luftwaffe fighters. Unfortunately on this occasion his aircraft was bounced by German ace Major Gunther Rall in his ME109 G-6AS, and escaped only by sending his P47......

On the 12th May 1944, Col. Hubert Zemke tried his new fan tactic, designed to engage Luftwaffe fighters. Unfortunately on this occasion his aircraft was bounced by German ace Major Gunther Rall in his ME109 G-6AS, and escaped only by sending his P47......

A pair of Focke Wulf 190A4s of 9./JG2 Richthofen based at Vannes, France during February 1943. The nearest aircraft is that of Staffelkapitan Siegfried Schnell. The badge on the nose is the rooster emblem of III./JG2 and the decoration on Schnells r......

In just six weeks Hitler's forces had overrun western Europe as once proud armies swiftly fell before the might of the German blitzkrieg. It was a devastating defeat, and now only Britain stood alone. Few thought she could survive. As Churchi......

In just six weeks Hitler's forces had overrun western Europe as once proud armies swiftly fell before the might of the German blitzkrieg. It was a devastating defeat, and now only Britain stood alone. Few thought she could survive. As Churchi......

In just six weeks Hitler's forces had overrun western Europe as once proud armies swiftly fell before the might of the German blitzkrieg. It was a devastating defeat, and now only Britain stood alone. Few thought she could survive. As Churchi......

In just six weeks Hitler's forces had overrun western Europe as once proud armies swiftly fell before the might of the German blitzkrieg. It was a devastating defeat, and now only Britain stood alone. Few thought she could survive. As Churchi......

The awesome battleship Tirpitz under the command of Admiral Schniewind, in company with battleships Scheer and Hipper, setting sail during Operation Rosselsprung, destined for the open sea and the North Atlantic convoy traffic. Messerschmitt Me109s ......

The awesome battleship Tirpitz under the command of Admiral Schniewind, in company with battleships Scheer and Hipper, setting sail during Operation Rosselsprung, destined for the open sea and the North Atlantic convoy traffic. Messerschmitt Me109s ......

The awesome battleship Tirpitz under the command of Admiral Schniewind, in company with battleships Scheer and Hipper, setting sail during Operation Rosselsprung, destined for the open sea and the North Atlantic convoy traffic. Messerschmitt Me109s ......

The awesome battleship Tirpitz under the command of Admiral Schniewind, in company with battleships Scheer and Hipper, setting sail during Operation Rosselsprung, destined for the open sea and the North Atlantic convoy traffic. Messerschmitt Me109s ......

Leutnant Klaus Bretschneider, Staffelkapitan of 5./JG300 kicks up the dust as he taxies his Fw190 A-8 Red One from its forest hiding place into the sunlight in preparation for take-off. The scene is northern Germany, November 1944. The Staffelkapita......

Leutnant Klaus Bretschneider, Staffelkapitan of 5./JG300 kicks up the dust as he taxies his Fw190 A-8 Red One from its forest hiding place into the sunlight in preparation for take-off. The scene is northern Germany, November 1944. The Staffelkapita......

Leutnant Klaus Bretschneider, Staffelkapitan of 5./JG300 kicks up the dust as he taxies his Fw190 A-8 Red One from its forest hiding place into the sunlight in preparation for take-off. The scene is northern Germany, November 1944. The Staffelkapit......

It was the foundation upon which the Luftwaffe was built and flew throughout WWII. It was flown by some of the greatest fighter Aces of all time, and credited with more air victories than any other fighter in history. It was the Messerschmitt Bf10......

Sussex Coast, England, 16th August 1940. For Donald MacDonald, Squadron leader of 64 Squadron, this particular day was fairly eventful. Catching the JG54 fighters and III/KG55 bombers on the coast, he personally accounted for one Me109E destroyed,......

Portland, England, 30th September 1940. Already an accomplished Spitfire ace with at least 10 confirmed kills, Bob Doe had just transferred from 234 squadron to 238 Hurricane squadron when he intercepted and brought down a Heinkel He111P-2 from I/......

Hajo Hermanns faithful Ju-88 4D + AR south of Mount Etna in the spring of 1941. The Ju88 was originally constructed as a high-speed bomber. The prototype had its maiden flight in 1936 and the aircraft was operational in 1939. During World War II ten......

An Me262B-1a of 10/NJG.11 Kommando Welter climbs to operational altitude to begin an anti-Mosquito patrol in March 1945. The Royal Navy's best test pilot, Captain Eric Brown, chief naval test pilot and commanding officer of the Captured Enemy Ai......

Jagdgeschwader 300 (JG 300) was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. JG 300 was formed on June 26, 1943 in Deelen as Stab/Versuchskommando Herrmann, from July 18, 1943 as Stab/JG Herrmann, and then finally redesignated on August 20, 1943 to Stab/JG 300. Its first Geschwaderkommodore was Oberstleutnant Hajo Herrmann.

The Focke-Wulf 190 development project began in 1937. Conceived as a hedge against total dependence on the Messerchmitt 109, the 190 was designed by Kurt Tank utilizing a radial engine. This was against generally accepted design criteria in Germany, and many historians believe that the decision to produce a radial engine fighter was largely due to the limited manufacturing capacity for in-line, water-cooled engines which were widely used on all other Luftwaffe aircraft. Despite these concerns, Tanks design was brilliant, and the 190 would become one of the top fighter aircraft of WWII. The first prototype flew in mid-1939. The aircraft had excellent flying characteristics, a wonderful rate of acceleration, and was heavily armed. By late 1940 the new fighter was ordered into production. Nicknamed the butcher bird, by Luftwaffe pilots, early 190s were quite successful in the bomber interceptor role, but at this stage of the war many Allied bombing raids lacked fighter escort. As the war dragged on, Allied bombers were increasingly accompanied by fighters, including the very effective P-51 Mustang. The Allies learned from experience that the 190s performance fell off sharply at altitudes above 20,000 feet. As a result, most Allied bombing missions were shifted to higher altitudes when fighter opposition was likely. Kurt Tank had recognized this shortcoming and began working on a high-altitude version of the 190 utilizing an in-line, water-cooled engine. Utilizing a Jumo 12-cylinder engine rated at 1770-HP, and capable of 2,240-HP for short bursts with its methanol injection system, the 190D, or Long Nose or Dora as it was called, had a top speed of 426-MPH at 22,000 feet. Armament was improved with two fuselage and two wing mounted 20mm cannon. To accommodate the changes in power plants the Dora had a longer, more streamlined fuselage, with 24 inches added to the nose, and an additional 19 inches added aft of the cockpit to compensate for the altered center of gravity. By mid 1944 the Dora began to reach fighter squadrons in quantity. Although the aircraft had all the right attributes to serve admirably in the high altitude interceptor role, it was not generally focused on such missions. Instead many 190Ds were assigned to protect airfields where Me-262 jet fighters were based. This was due to the latter aircrafts extreme vulnerability to Allied attack during takeoff and landing. The 190Ds also played a major role in Operation Bodenplatte, the New Years Day raid in 1945 which destroyed approximately 500 Allied aircraft on the ground. The High Command was impressed with the 190Ds record on this raid, and ordered most future production of the Doras to be equipped as fighter-bombers. In retrospect this was a strategic error, and this capable aircraft was not fully utilized in the role for which it was intended.

The German medium bomber the Heinkel He111 was designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter. The first He111 flew on 24th of February 1935, piloted by chief test pilot Gerhard Nitschke. The Heinkel He111 was the primary medium bomber of the Luftwaffe during the opening years of World War Two and the major bomber during the Battle of Britain. It was also used as a torpedo bomber during the Battle of the Atlantic. The Heinkel He111 was used in all theatres, Western, Eastern, Middle East and Northern Africa. He111 continued in production into 1944 and by the end of the war it was used primarily as a transport. Its origins came from a pre war airliner design.